Hidden Role Games

These are the games where trust can be lost amongst friends and our true colours come out. Today, we are counting down the top 10 games with hidden roles. These are games that utilise social deduction or the traitor mechanics.

We are excluding games that are more centred around role selection as they are more of an intentional tactic as apposed to a secretive endevour. We will also not be including games that are not yet fully released. So Secret Hitler will unfortunately not be on this list.

10 - Deception: Murder in Hong Kong

Previously published as CS-Files, Deception: Murder in Hong Kong is a deduction based party game for 4-12 players. One of these players is the murderer, another a Forensic Scientist, and the rest investigators trying to catch out the murderer by the clues left behind.

The game shares a lot of similarities to Mysterium (which also had its english release in 2014). The game is quite light and while the mechanics might be a little bit more to handle than the aforementioned Mysterium, the semi-cooperative gameplay actually makes it come out on top

9 - Two Rooms and a Boom

Of course a social deduction game is going to be on the list (Maybe even more!), but Two Rooms and a Boom brings a refreshing take on the Werewolf/Mafia style game. Unlike other hidden role games, there is no need for a moderator, Each game is timed and you can do whatever you want with your character card, including showing it to other players.

That being said the reason this isn't hire up on our list is because it can really fall flat when not enough of the right roles are included, which can make the final hostage swap somewhat of a coin flip.

8 - Spyfall

This game actually came as a surprise to me when I first picked it up. I wasn't expecting it to be much more then a casual filler game that struggled to compete with my vast array of other party games... Oh how wrong I was.

The rules to Spyfall are simple, are you a spy? Try and figure out where everyone else is while avoiding suspicion. What's that you say? You know where we all are? Well make sure you let the group know, but don't be too obvious otherwise the spy will figure it out!

7 - The Resistance

Set in the near future, The Resistance pits a small group of resistance fighters against a powerful and corrupt government. The resistance has launched a series of bold and daring missions to bring the government to its knees. Unfortunately spies have infiltrated the resistance ranks, ready to sabotage the carefully crafted plans. Even a single spy can take down a resistance mission team, choose your teams carefully or forever lose your chance for freedom.

The Resistance is a fantastic game that lends itself quite closely to Werewolf, the two aspect of the game balance tremendously; You are either a Resistance member desperately trying to find your fellow team mates, or a spy, scheming and lying your way through, waiting for the right moment to strike.

6 - Don't Mess with Cthulhu

Originally released as TimeBomb, this game takes the best aspects of games like The Resistance and Werewolf and puts them neatly into a small, more digestible package. While Resistance has the evil players knowing who they are partnered with, Don't Mess with Cthulhu has you given almost no information, which only adds to the excitement and mystery.

The game takes place over four rounds. The Investigators must uncover all the Elder Signs to win; the Cultists win when Cthulhu is revealed or if the game ends before all the Elder Signs are discovered.

5 - Battlestar Galactica: The Board Game

If you loved what Shadows brought to the table, but are looking for a heavy game to sink your teeth into, you should be looking at Battlestar Galactica. Based on the Sci Fi Channel show of the same name, this game takes what made Shadows over Camelot great and put a deeper twist into it.

Each player is secretly assigned his or her loyalty at the start of the game. Players will either be loyal to the humans, or to the Cylons. Humans and Cylons have specific and conflicting winning objectives. The human players win by reaching Kobol, but the Galactica will be be threatened by a host of challenges along the way. Only through the cooperation of the humans will the ship (and fleet) survive.

4 - Shadows Over Camelot

When I think of the Traitor mechanic, I think of Shadows. Sure other games may of improved on it since but its hard to go past the sting that came from the person you had trusted the whole game turning out to be against us.

Shadows over Camelot is a unique collaborative game featuring a malevolent twist! As the incarnation of the Knights of the Round Table, you join forces against the game itself in an attempt to protect Camelot. The game doesn't always include the traitor, but the suspicion alone is enough to cause drama.

3 - Bang! The Dice Game

The original Bang! brought us an interesting concept, offering 3 different teams available to players. The game was essentially a 2 team slugfest with one player waiting in the wings to take everyone out when it best suited them. The game was great but it could often overstay its welcome at the table. This is where Bang! The Dice Game comes in.

All the excitement of Bang!, now with dice! In the Wild West, the eternal battle between the Law and the Outlaws keeps heating up. Suddenly, a rain of arrows darkens the sky: it’s an Indian attack! Are you bold enough to keep up with the Indians? Do you have the courage to challenge your fate? Can you expose and defeat the ruthless gunmen around you?

2 - Dead of Winter

What made games like Shadows and Battlestar Galactica so good? The potential for someone to be the traitor. Dead of Winter takes this idea and dials it up to 11. Dead of Winter is a meta-cooperative psychological survival game. This means the players are working together toward one common victory condition - but for each individual player to achieve victory, they must also complete their personal secret objective.

While this game didn't exactly invent the traitor mechanic, it certainly brought it into its own. The difficult choices faced by the players not only makes for an amazing dilema for the players to deal with; but also fits the theme of the game perfectly.

1 - Ultimate Werewolf

That's right, the grand daddy of all hidden role games, it's impossible to go past Werewolf. This game (and the ones it derives from) are the very reason behind this list. Ultimate Werewolf is an interactive game of deduction for two teams: Villagers and Werewolves. The Villagers don't know who the Werewolves are, and the Werewolves are trying to remain undiscovered while they slowly eliminate the Villagers one at a time. A Moderator (who isn't on a team) runs the game.

Not only does the game come with a wide variety of roles to keep it fresh and interesting, but it also has the ability to accomodate exceedingly large groups of people, albeit to the ability of the moderator in charge. No other game does it quite like Ultimate does and while the One Night series holds it own in the current marketplace, nothing beats the original.